Shoe-shining frame



No. 751,036. PATENTED FEB. 2, 1904.

H. J. WIGHMAN.

SHOE SHINING FRAME.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 24. 1903.

N0 MODEL.

UNITED STATES Patented February 2, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

HENRY J. VIOHMAN, OF DUBUQUE, IOWA.

SHOE-SHINING FRAIVIE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 751,036, dated February 2, 1904.

Application filed April 24, 1903.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY J. YVIGHMAN, a

buque, in the county of Dubuque and State of Iowa, have invented a new and useful Shoe- Shining Frame, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to an improved rest or support for holding boots, shoes, or other footwear while brushing, polishing, or otherwise cleaning the same, and has for its object to provide asimple, inexpensive, and efficient device of this character which may be quickly attached to a wall or other support and adapted to enter the shoe to form a brace therefor and ll out the front portion of the shoe while being operated upon.

A further object of the invention is to provide a support capable of exerting an upward pressure or tension on the supporting-arm while the shoe is being operated upon and in which the heel-piece is adjustable to and from the last or former, so as to accommodate shoes of different sizes.

A still further object is to provide novel means for detachably securing the last or former to the supporting-arm, so that the same may be quicklyr removed and replaced by a last adapted to the particular size and shape of shoe being cleaned.

' The invention consists in the construction and novel combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter fully described, illustrated' in the accompanying drawings, and pointed out in the claims hereto appended, it being understood that various changes in form, proportion, and minor details of construction may be resorted to without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of this invention.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of a shoe-support constructedin accordance with my invention, showing the same at-A tached to a wall. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the last or former, showing the manner of securing the same in position on the supporting-arm; and Fig. 3 is a detail perspective view of the last or former detached.

Similar numerals of reference indicate cor- Serial No. 154,168. (No model.)

responding parts in all the figures of the drawings. citizen of the United States, residing at Duv ging-plate secured 1n any sultable manner, as

1 designates a rectangular block or supportby screws or other fastening devices 2, to a wall or other support 3.

The shoe-support 4 is preferably formed of a continuous piece Yof spring-wire or other suitable material theopposite ends of which are bent to form a pair of vertically-disposed hooks 5, which engage screws 6 or similar supporting devices secured to the block 2 and by means of which the supporting-arm is secured in position on the wall.V The ends of the wire after the hooks 5 are formed are bent to form coils 7, which normally bear against the block 2, and thence outwardly and down'- wardly, forming a pair of parallel spring-arms 8, the ends of the wire forming the arms being bent to form inwardly-extending alined coils 9 and thence outwardly and downwardly, forming a pair of parallel spring-arms 10, which lie in substantially the same plane, but a less distance apart than the arms l8. The ends of the arms 10 are bent at right angles, as shown at 10', to form a support for the former or last 11. The former or last 11, which is preferably formed with a flat base 12, a rounded upper surface 13, and a squared end portion 14, is provided with longitudinally-disposed grooves or channels 15, which communicate with a central longitudinal opening 16 and form a seat for the angular eXtension 10, the last Vor former 11 being held in position on the extension. by frictional contact of the arms comprising said extension with the interior walls of the channel or groove 15.

As a means for regulating the tension of the supporting-arm and also to provide means for supporting-the heel of the shoe I provide an adjustable bracket or heel-piece 16', preferably formed of two sections of wire or other suitable material twisted together, as shown at 17, the ends thereof being bent to form a pair of laterally-extending arms 18 and thence inwardly and downwardly, forming hooks 19, the ends of which are preferably inclined or beveled, as shown at 20, adapted to engage one or other of a series of outwardly-extending pins or lugs 21, secured in any suitable manner to the sides of the block 2. The sections of wire forming the bracket are preferably of unequal length, the longer section after the twist 17 is formed being bent downwardly and inwardly to form a loop or tongue 22, adapted to support the heel of the shoe, after which the two sections of wire comprising the bracket or heel-piece are twisted together, as shown at 23, and the ends thereof bent outwardly, as shown at 24, and passed through the alined coils 9, forming a hinged connection between the bracket and the supporting-arm, permitting said arm to be swung into and out of engagement with the pins or lugs on the block 2 and regulating the distance between the heel-piece and the last or former.

From the foregoing' description the operation of my device will be readily understood and is as follows: The support being in position on the block 2 with the hooks 5 engaging the screws 6, the shoe is placed on the last or former and the bracket or heel-piece adjusted to or from the last to accommodate the size of shoe by grasping the loop or tongue and pressing inwardly and upwardly thereon and forcing the inclined hooked ends of the bracket into engagement with the corresponding pins or lugs on the supporting-block, which locks the bracket in the desired position. The heel of the shoe may now be slipped over the tongue or loop, the inherent spreading or separating tendency of the tongue and supporting-arm being sufficient to hold the shoe in position on the last while being operated upon, the springs 7 and 9 exerting a resisting upward pressure on the supporting arm and causing a steady or constant tension on the shoe while polishing or otherwise cleaning the same. When it is desired to remove the last, the parallel arms 10 are compressed or forced together, which causes the spring-arms comprising the angular extension to become disengaged from the grooves or channels, thereby permitting the last or former being removed and a larger or smaller one substituted, as the occasion requires.

The tendency of the coils 7 is to force the supporting-arm, together with the bracket or heel-piece, outwardly from the block 2, so that when the heel-piece is'adjusted to fit the shoe the hooked ends 19 of the heel-piece will be forced in contact with the lugs or pins 21, causing the hooks to firmly engage said pins or lugs and lock the supporting-arm and heelpiece in position, while at the same time any downward pressure exerted on the last or former will be resisted by the spring-coils 7.

Having thus described my invention, what claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, 1s-

l. A device of the class described, comprising a base or support, a yieldable arm secured thereto and forming a toe support, and a bracket or heel-support carried by said arm.

2. A device of the class described, comprising a base or support, a pair of spring-arms secured thereto, means carried by the arms for supporting a shoe, and a bracket or heelsupport adjustable with relation to the springarms.

3. A device of the class described, comprising a base or support, a pair of spring-arms detachably secured thereto, means carried by the arms for supporting a shoe, and a bracket or heel-support pivotally connected to the spring arms and adjustable with relation thereto.

4. A device of the class described, comprising a base or support, a pair of spring-arms secured thereto and forming a toe-support, and a bracket or heel-support carried by the spring-arms and adjustable with relation thereto.

5. A device of the class described, comprising a base or support, a pair of yielding arms secured thereto and forming a toe-support, holding pins or lugs secured to the support, and a bracket or heel-support pivotally connected to the yielding arms and adapted to engage the pins or lugs for adjusting the heelsupport with relation to said arms.

6. A device of the class described comprising, a pair of spring-arms having their end portions bent to form supporting-hooks and provided with inwardly extending alined coils, the ends of the arms extending downwardly and outwardly and terminating in an angularly-disposed shoe-support, and bracket or heel-support carried by the spring-arms and adjustable with relation thereto.

7. A device of the class described, comprising a base or support, holding pins or lugs secured tothe support, a pair of spring-arms having their end portions bent to form supporting-hooks and provided with inwardlyextending alined coils, the ends of the arms extending downwardly and outwardly and terminating in a tapering singularly-disposed shoe-support, a bracket or heel-support having a pair of laterally-extending ears or lugs journaled in said coils, said heel-support being provided with a depending loop or tongue and having its opposite end provided with transversely-diposed locking-arms adapted to engage the pins or lugs for adjusting the heelsupport with relation to the spring-arms.

8. A device of the class described, comprising a base or support, a pair of upper springarms detachably secured thereto, said arms being provided at an intermediate point with inwardly-extending alined coils dening a pair of downwardly and outwardly extending lower spring-arms terminating in an angularly-disposed extension or shoe-support, a removable last or former detachably secured to vthe eX- tension, holding pins or lugs secured to the IOO IIO

support, and a bracket or heel-support pivoted in the coils and adapted to engage the pins or lugs for adjusting the heel-support with relation to the spring-arms.

9. A device of the class described, compris-y 10. A device of the class described, comprising a base or support, a pair of spring-arms secured thereto, a bracket or heel-support I5 carried by the spring-arms and a last or former detachably secured to said arms.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing, as my own I have hereto aiixed my signature in the presence of two Witnesses.

HENRY J. WICHMAN. l

Vitnesses:

C. H. POND, CLARA ScHLoss'rEIN. 

